Improvement in railroad-signals



2 Sheets--Shet1l E. L. HPKINS 8|. H. P. NORTON.

Railroad-SignaIs.

Patented Feb.10,1874.

Nui/17,396.

Q QM@ aw m'bzassas:

rTnn STATES PATENT OFFICE..

ESICK L. HOPKINS, OF HOMER, AND HABLAN I). NORTON, O F IONIA, ASSIGN-ORS TO THEMSELVES AND GEORGE C. OVERHISER, OF IONIA `OOUNTY,

MICHIGAN.

IMPROVEMENT IN RAILROAD-SIGNALS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 147,396, dated February10, 1874; application ltd March 8, 1873.

To all whom it may concern s i p 3e it known that we, Esteri L. Hopkins,of Horner, in the county of Calhoun and in the State of llIichigan, andHABLAN I. NORTON, of Ionia, in the county of Ionia and in the State ofMichigan, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Danger-Signalsfor Railway- Curves and Railway-Crossings; and do hereby declare thatthe following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings and to the letters of referencemarked thereon, and being a part of this specification, in which- Figurel, Sheet 1, is a perspective view of our system of semaphores asarranged to indicate the presence of a locomotive on a curve of the lineof rails to warn the engineer of an approaching or following train. Fig.2 is a like view of said signals as applied at a railroadcrossing. Fig.3 shows in perspective the post, rock-shaft, lever, 85e., employed foroperating the curve-signals. Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the post,operating-lever, &c., employed for operating the signa-ls at a crossing.Fig. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of one ofthe curvesignals, andFig. 6 is a like view of a tripping-plate to be secured to or upon theside of the engine.

Like letters refer to like parts in each figure.

The nature of this invention relates to an improved system ofrailway-track and railwaycrossings danger-signals, by means of which,when a railway-train is 011 a curve in the line of the railroad, thatfact is made known to an approaching train in either direction. It also-relates to a modification thereof, to be usedat railway-crossin gs, forindicating the approach of a train by means of seinaphores actuated.

jonrnaled in uprights at cach end of the system, and in a trip-lever andface-plates, which, being actuated by a double-incline plane orstationary cam affixed to and project-ing from the alon gside ofwhich'the poles B or the telegraphpoles are erected. `To the sides ofthese poles, which are set around a curve, we secure two pairs ofbrackets, C, projecting toward the rail.- road-track. In the lowerbrackets we pivot, by means of a stud at the top and bottom of each, thesemaphores D D, etc., all of which are connected by a wire, a, runningalong onel side, and by similar wire b at the other side. Thesewires andthe semaphores, as established, extend around the curve of the railroaduntil the end semaphores are visible on the str. ight track of the road,where their ends are secured to the ends of a double rocker-arm, E,keyed on a rock-shaft, F, journaledin the posts G, projecting throughthat one nearest the railroad-track, and carrying at that end afaceplate, H, having a hook, d, at one side. On the end of the shaft,outside the face-plate, a

trip-lever, I, is pivoted, to the lower end oflstationary cam, J, Fig.2, with a projecting rib or flan ge, which should overrun the top ofevery lever at the end as it approaches it and, as the locomotive or camprogresses, depresses it (the lever) to the positions shown at the leftof Fi 1 in passing it when going in either direction. In all the wiresthere should or may be between their connections 011e end of each pieceof the wire formed into a coil, C, to allow for expansion andcontraction 'under variations of temperature, and to ease the suddenstrain or shock thrown on the connections by a train passing at highspeed.

Then all the semaphores are in line or parallcl with the track oi' theroad, as is the upper series, D it will indicate that the track is clearto the engineer otl an approaching train. New, it' a train approach thecurve, going t'rom lci't to right, its cam J will overrun and depressthe lever I in the opposite direct-ion from that shown by the firstlever without moving the rock-shaft F', as the piu e travels away fromthe hook d ot' the face-plate H 5 passing on, it depresses the lever Itothe position shown; it moves the rock-shaft, drawing the wires ,whichrotate the semaphorcs on their axis a quarterre-volution, and thuspresent their broad sides to the View ot' the engineer ot' anapproaching train from either direction, and so warn him that the curveis occupied. It' one side of cach semaphore be painted white, it willdenote that the train is ahead of him. By painting thc other side red,it will warn him that a train is approaching him. The train passing ontothe end ot' the cur\e,'co1ning in contact with the lever I, returns thesemaphorcs to their normal position parallel with the track. A trainentering the curve from the right actuates in like manner the upperseries ot' scinaphores.

y Over the scmaphorcs we can place any convenient cover or ln'otcction,to keep out the snow and rain, and thus guard against any interferencein the workin g ot' our system vlfroni icc; and over the other parts oi'our mechanism covers or guards can be placed for like purposes.

le have shown in Fig. 5 how the rain cap or cover can be applied to thesemaphore. cZ the cap or cover, which rests abovc or over the pivot, andsheds off the rain and snow. Both ends ot' the pivot may be providedwith this protection. These caps over the pivots or pivotal caps areusually constructed of metal and as shown at c2, and t'astei'ied to thebrackets C,

.or cast with them, and have suitable indentations to allow the journalsor pivots of the semaphore to rest and turn in. rlhus construeted, theyare not only very durable, but they are of a shape and size .not in anymanner to interfere with the sight of the signal or its operation oruse.

Our said signal may be operated in the single set, as in the descriptionbefore given; and in that case we use a face plate, 1'1", with a doubleshoulder or projection, d, as shown in Fig. 4, and this signal will beopened or displayed by the approach ot' the train, and closed as thetra-in passes the opposite end 5' or we may use, as we have alreadyfully described, a double set of semaphores, one placed above the other,and so arranged that trains'approaching from one direction will operatethe upper series, and those approaching from the opposite direction willoperate the lower series. Either of these plans is the counterpart ofthe other, for the mechanism is the same, and the detail. ot'arrangement of the several parts almost identical. So, also, we canarrange the semaphorcs as that they will answer for highway-crossings.In this case, we use the same mechanism before described; but we groupthe semaphores together, so that the letters or signs painted on themshall bear any convenient signal or warning, as in Fig. 2. Thus theapproach ing train sets the semaphores broad side to the carri age-road,givin g the needed warnin The two signals can be readily used togetheror separately, as occasion may require.

Having thus fully set forth the nature and merits ot' our invention,what we claim as new 1sl. A series ol' pivoted signals suitably` paintedor lettered, and arranged by the side of the rail way, and connectedwith cach other by wires, and operated by the passing trains by meansot' the lever and face-plate and suitable mechanism placed at each endot' said series, substantially in the manner and for the purposes setforth.

2. The pivotcd disks having a ca-p, c2, above their journals, andpainted or lettered, and arranged in a series by the slide ot' the rail,and connected together by wires for simultaneous operation, and cachrotating at a right angle with its plane when moved by passing trains,by the means and in the manner set i'orth.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing wc have hereunto set our handsthis 30th day ot' January, 1873.

ESR/K L. HOPKINS. HABLAN l. NORTON.

Witnesses T. S. Donsnv, E. l). PATTER, NATI-IANIEL BEATrrn, J. S.NEWLAND. v

